Bag closure

ABSTRACT

Bag closure clips according to this invention are contained in a continuous molded plastic strip to be rolled in a coil for storage in an automatic bagging machine. The closure clips are separated from the continuous strip and applied to the neck of a bread bag or the like to close the bag. Each closure clip includes a flat base having a transverse notch or hinge which divides each base into a pair of hinged legs, a separate upwardly extending hook formed integrally with each leg, and a separate flange extending downwardly and outwardly from the outer edge of each leg. When the strip is rolled in a coil, the flanges engage hooks projecting from the closures in an adjacent layer of the roll, which keeps adjacent layers of the roll aligned with each other, and thereby facilitates use of the closure strip in an automatic bagging machine. The clip is applied to a bag by folding the legs about the hinge and releasably engaging the hooks in a snap fit. A second hinge formed in one of the legs enables the hooks to be easily moved from their engaged position when the clip is removed from the bag.

Unie States Patent Parmenter June 25, 1974 BAG CLOSURE Richard L. Parmenter, 952 Montecito Dr., Los Angeles, Calif. 90031 [22] Filed: Aug. 17, 1973 [21] Appl. No.: 389,349

[76] Inventor:

[52] US. Cl. 24/30.5 R, 229/62 [51] Int. Cl 865d 63/00, 865d 77/10 [58] Field of Search 24/30.5 P, 248 BB, 255 SL,

24/255 BC, 245 FF, 30.5 R; 128/346; 229/62 Primary ExaminerDonald A. Griffin Attorney, Agent, or FirmChristie, Parker & Hale [5 7] ABSTRACT Bag closure clips according to this invention are contained in a continuous molded plastic strip to be rolled in a coil for storage in an automatic bagging machine. The closure clips are separated from the continuous strip and applied to the neck of a bread bag or the like to close the bag. Each closure clip includes a flat base having a transverse notch or hinge which divides each base into a pair of hinged legs, a separate upwardly extending hook formed integrally with each leg, and a separate flange extending downwardly and outwardly from the outer edge of each leg. When the strip is rolled in a coil, the flanges engage hooks projecting from the closures in an adjacent layer of the roll, which keeps adjacent layers of the roll aligned with each other, and thereby facilitates use of the closure strip in an automatic bagging machine. The clip is applied to a bag by folding the legs about the hinge and releasably engaging the hooks in a snap fit. A second hinge formed in one of the legs enables the hooks to be easily moved from their engaged position when the clip is removed from the bag.

9 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures BAG CLOSURE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to closures for sealing bags to make them air-tight when storing perishable food products and the like.

Flexible plastic bags are commonly used in packaging perishable food products such as bread or other bakery items. In the past, various types of closures have been used for sealing plastic bags. For example, thin plastic or paper-covered wire tie strips have been wound around the neck of bags to close them. However, tie strips are relatively easily misplaced, and are tedious and time consuming to apply or remove. Pressuresensitive adhesive-backed labels also have been used as closures for bread packages, but once the package is opened the adhesive label will not provide an air-tight seal necessary to prevent spoilage. Bread packages also have been closed with clips made of a small plastic piece in flat form having an inwardly projecting openin g that fits around the neck of the bag. However, these clips also are relatively easy to lose, and are tedious and time-consuming to apply or remove.

Recently, hinged plastic snap-type clips have been used for sealing plastic food bags. These clips have several advantages over tie strips, adhesive-backed labels, or apertured plastic clips, in that they are quickly and easily applied or removed from a bag, they are not easily misplaced, and they provide a good air-tight seal which can protect the contents of the bag against spoilage. However, known prior art hinged plastic clips are not designed structurally so they can be manufactured in a continuous strip form adapted for easy storage, handling, and dispensing in an automatic bagging machine, which has thus far hindered wide-spread commercial use of hinged plastic clips.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention provides a hinged plastic snap-type clip which can be extruded in a continuous strip adapted for easy storage, handling, and dispensing in an automatic bagging machine.

Briefly, the snap-type closure clip includes a flat base having a transverse notch or hinge which divides the base into a pair of hinged legs. A separate upwardly extending hook is formed integrally with each leg, and a pair of laterally spaced apart flanges extend downwardly away from the bottom surface of the base. The clip can be applied to the neck of a bread bag or the like by folding the legs about their hinge and engaging the hooks in a snap fit. Each flange is formed integrally with a corresponding leg and extends laterally relative to the hook located on the same leg above it, so that when a continuous strip containing the bag closure is rolled in a coil, the flanges can engage hooks projecting from an adjacent layer of the roll, which keeps adjacent layers of the roll from slipping laterally relative to each other. In this way, the roll is easily handled and fed from an automatic machine for bagging food products such as bread. In a preferred form of the invention, the closure clip includes a second hinge formed in one of the legs adjacent the hook portion of the leg. The second hinge facilitates separating the hooks from their engaged position when removing the clip from the bread bag.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS These and other aspects of the invention will be more fully understood by referring to the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 shows a cross-sectional elevation view of the hinged snap-type clip of this invention, and illustrates both the hooked position of the clip, and a continuous strip of the clips rolled in a coil;

FIG. 2 shows a fragmentary perspective view of a series of the clips held together in a continuous strip; and

FIG. 3 shows a cross-sectional elevation view of an alternate embodiment of the hinged snap-type clip.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to FIG. 1, a snap-type closure clip 10 includes a Hat base 12 having a notch 14 or living hinge formed in its center to divide the base into a right leg 16 and a left leg 18. Preferably, the base 12 has a thickness of about 0.035 inch. The width A of notch 14 is 0.007 inch, and the angular orientation of each side of the notch (represented by angle a) is 45. The width B of base 12 preferably is 1.16 inches.

An upwardly and outwardly extending right hook 20 is formed integrally with the top surface of right leg 16 near the outer extremity of the right leg. Right hook 20 extends away from right leg 16 at an angle b of Right hook 20 includes a top edge 22 lying in a plane parallel to the top edge of base 12 and having a width C of 0.055 inch. A beveled outer edge surface 24 intersects top edge 22 at an angle 0 of Hook 20 has a hooked engaging surface 26 with a length D of 0.05 inch.

An upwardly extending left hook 28 is formed integrally with the outer edge of left leg 18. Left hook 28 extends upwardly from the top edge of left leg 18 at an angle e of 90. Left hook 28 includes a top edge surface 30 lying in a plane parallel to the top edge of base 12 and having a width E of 0.055 inch. A beveled outer edge surface 32 intersects top edge 30 at an angle f of 130. Left hook 28 also includes a hooked engaging surface 34 having a length F of 0.05 inch.

The top edge surfaces 22, 30 of the right and left hooks, respectively, are spaced above the bottom edge of base 12 by a distance G of 0.20 inch.

In using the closure clip to seal a food bag or the like, the open end or neck portion of the bag (not shown) is gathered or pinched together and held while the closure is manually snapped around the neck of' the bag. The closure is snapped into place by grasping the clip and folding one leg relative to the other about hinge 14, as represented by the arrow in FIG. 1. The closure is made of a resilient plastic material, such as polypropylene or polyethylene, which allows hooks 20 and 28 to deflect relative to each other before engaging surfaces 26 and 34 hook together in a snap fit illustrated in phantom line in FIG. 1.

Closure clip 10 also includes a downwardly and outwardly extending right flange 36 formed integrally with the outer edge of right leg 16, and a separate downwardly and outwardly extending left flange 38 formed integrally with the outer edge of left leg 18. Each flange is oriented at an angle h of 130 relative to the bottom edge of base 12. Flange 38 is longer than flange 36 for a use described below.

A primary use of the flanges is to facilitate use of the closure clip in automatic bagging machines. As shown in FIG. 2, bag closure can be extruded in a continuous strip 40. After extrusion, the strip may be stamped out to form the individual closure clips 10 which are held together by tabs 42. Alternately, strip 40 can be continuous. Strip 40 has lateral flexibility which permits it to be rolled in a coil for storage and dispensing in an automatic bagging machine (not shown). FIG. 1 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the strip rolled in a coil, showing how each layer of the strip fits together with adjoining layers. The adjacent layers of the strip when rolled in a coil are represented in phantom line at 10a, 10b, and 10c of FIG. 1. The top edge and beveled edge of each hook nests snugly in the V-shaped channel formed above it by the intersection of the hooks corresponding flange and the bottom edge of base 12. This engagement of the hooks and flanges aligns adjacent layers of the roll and prevents them from slipping laterally relative to each other. In this way, the strip can be kept in continuous alignment, which makes it possible for the roll to be easily handled and fed from an automatic machine for bagging food products such as bread. If the strip 40 is continuous, the bagging machine may include a cutting blade mechanism (not shown) for separating the strip into individual closure clips prior to when the clips are applied.

The flanges also may be used to facilitate snapping the hooks into engagement around the top of a bag. Further, the added length of flange 38 may be used to apply leverage to spread the engaging surfaces of the hooks apart when the user disengages the closure clip to open the bag. A second notch 41 formed in leg 18 adjacent the base of hook 28 allows hook 28 to be pivoted away from its locked position when leverage is applied to the end of flange 38.

FIG. 3 shows an alternate closure clip 42 which includes a downwardly and outwardly extending flange 44 formed integrally with the top outer edge of left hook 28. The top edge of flange 42 is continuous with beveled edge 32 of hook 28, extending downwardly at the same angle as beveled edge 32.

Flanges 36 and 38 of clip 42 are longer than they are in clip 10. Preferably, the vertical length l of flanges 36 and 38 in clip 42 is 0.12 inch. The extended length allows flange 38 to be engaged for substantially the entire length of flange 44 when a strip of closure clips 42 is rolled in a coil, thereby insuring that the roll will be properly aligned in a single plane for use in a bagging machine.

Clip 42 also includes a series of laterally spaced apart, longitudinally extending corrugations or ribs 46 formed integrally with the top surfaces of legs 16 and 18. The corrugations are spaced apart so they are offset, as shown in FIG. 3, when the clip is hooked to provide means for crimping the neck of the bag to keep the clip from slipping relative to the bag.

I claim:

l. A bag closure comprising an elongated base having a top surface, a bottom surface, and a transverse notch forming a hinge which divides the base into a pair of hinged legs so one leg can be folded over the other leg, a pair of laterally spaced apart hooks extending upwardly away from the top surface of the base, each hook being formed integrally with a corresponding leg so onehook can be releasably locked to the other hook when the legs are folded about the hinge, a pair of laterally spaced apart flanges extending downwardly away from the bottom surface of the base, each flange being formed integrally with a corresponding leg and extending laterally relative to the hook located on the same leg above it so that when a continuous strip containing the bag closure is rolled in a coil, the flanges engage corresponding hooks to prevent adjacent legs of the coil from slipping laterally relative to each other.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1 in which each hook has a lateral edge surface which extends in a plane which traverses the base, and in which each flange has a complementary lateral surface which extends in substantially the same transverse plane as the lateral edge of its corresponding hook so the lateral edges of each cooperating hook and flange combination engage each other when the strip is rolled in a coil.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1 in which each flange extends laterally outwardly and downwardly from the bottom surface of the base, and in which each hook has a beveled lateral edge surface which engages its corresponding flange when the strip is rolled in a coil.

4. Apparatus according to claim 3 in which each hook has a top edge surface which engages the bottom surface of the base when the strip is rolled in a coil.

5. Apparatus according to claim 4 in which the beveled edge of each hook intersects the top edge surface thereof, and in which each flange has a downwardly and outwardly extending inner lateral edge surface intersecting the bottom edge surface of the base, the bev eled edge of each hook engaging the inner lateral edge of its corresponding flange when the bottom surface of the base is engaged with the top edge of the hooks.

6. Apparatus according to claim 1 including a third flange extending downwardly away from one of the hooks to facilitate spreading the hooks apart after they are engaged.

7. Apparatus according to claim 6 in which the third flange extends downwardly in the same direction as the flange located below it on the closure clip.

8. Apparatus according to claim 1 including corrugations formed on the top surface of each leg of the base.

9. Apparatus according to claim 1 including a second transverse notch forming a hinge in one of the legs adjacent the hook portion of the leg for allowing the hook portion of the leg to be pivoted away from its locked position. 

1. A bag closure comprising an elongated base having a top surface, a bottom surface, and a transverse notch forming a hinge which divides the base into a pair of hinged legs so one leg can be folded over the other leg, a pair of laterally spaced apart hooks extending upwardly away from the top surface of the base, each hook being formed integrally with a corresponding leg so one hook can be releasably locked to the other hook when the legs are folded about the hinge, a pair of laterally spaced apart flanges extending downwardly away from the bottom surface of the base, each flange being formed integrally with a correspondiNg leg and extending laterally relative to the hook located on the same leg above it so that when a continuous strip containing the bag closure is rolled in a coil, the flanges engage corresponding hooks to prevent adjacent legs of the coil from slipping laterally relative to each other.
 2. Apparatus according to claim 1 in which each hook has a lateral edge surface which extends in a plane which traverses the base, and in which each flange has a complementary lateral surface which extends in substantially the same transverse plane as the lateral edge of its corresponding hook so the lateral edges of each cooperating hook and flange combination engage each other when the strip is rolled in a coil.
 3. Apparatus according to claim 1 in which each flange extends laterally outwardly and downwardly from the bottom surface of the base, and in which each hook has a beveled lateral edge surface which engages its corresponding flange when the strip is rolled in a coil.
 4. Apparatus according to claim 3 in which each hook has a top edge surface which engages the bottom surface of the base when the strip is rolled in a coil.
 5. Apparatus according to claim 4 in which the beveled edge of each hook intersects the top edge surface thereof, and in which each flange has a downwardly and outwardly extending inner lateral edge surface intersecting the bottom edge surface of the base, the beveled edge of each hook engaging the inner lateral edge of its corresponding flange when the bottom surface of the base is engaged with the top edge of the hooks.
 6. Apparatus according to claim 1 including a third flange extending downwardly away from one of the hooks to facilitate spreading the hooks apart after they are engaged.
 7. Apparatus according to claim 6 in which the third flange extends downwardly in the same direction as the flange located below it on the closure clip.
 8. Apparatus according to claim 1 including corrugations formed on the top surface of each leg of the base.
 9. Apparatus according to claim 1 including a second transverse notch forming a hinge in one of the legs adjacent the hook portion of the leg for allowing the hook portion of the leg to be pivoted away from its locked position. 